How Media Change Everything

Lesson 329 A Communication Perspective on Brexit

The decision of the people of the UK to exit the European Union seemed to surprise and shock the world. But it becomes more understandable when one takes into account the communication dynamics involved in reclaiming national identities.

Uncertainty on several fronts at the same time often leads to a kind of “circling of the wagons” response in many kinds of situations. This is true for organizations when competition threatens, for families when overall wellbeing is suffering, for cities in economic decline, and for nations with similar kinds of worries about individual and national security.

Many people in the United States are experiencing a similar return to a “nation first” mentality evidenced by the support Donald Trump has received in the recent presidential campaign. Extreme political polarization, threats of terrorism, and the decline of the middle class are combining to produce a strong “America first” response.

Joining the European Union for Britain meant a free flow of immigrants flooding into the country taking jobs at a time when middle class struggles were intensifying. Now the idea of even more immigrants is frightening. And melding into a European identity also meant losing some of that strong sense of pride in being British. The overriding problem in Britain is that current political leaders have failed to demonstrate to the public that they can be a good partner in Europe in order to avoid military conflicts and enhance trade, and still maintain a strong British nationality.

Similar forces have been felt in Russia. Building off of the economic struggles all around him, Putin has been able to create a resurgence of nationalism by tapping into traditional Russian pride, much of which is based on a history of superior literature, music, art, ballet, sports and military strength.

It seems ironic that just at a time when globalization is creating new positive opportunities on every front, the fear of losing important national identities is producing a serious and potentially destructive backlash in many parts of the world.

So the basic strategic communication question for the future is this: Is it possible to go forward with the benefits of globalization and also retain national identity and pride? I think so. But we need to make sure globalization benefits are real for everyone, and that those benefits are communicated effectively.